15.09. (Wed) 20:45 Shakhtar - Partizan

History In The Making

This is the sixth time that Ukrainian giants Shakhtar Donetsk are featuring in the Champions League but until now they have never marched past the group stage. In 2007-08 and 2008-09 the Miners commenced their European Cup adventure with wins but failed to sustain that momentum.

Mircea Lucescu's side qualified automatically for the group stage of Europe's premier club competition but suffered a major injury setback. Brazilian playmaker Fernandinho suffered a serious leg injury in the weekend win against Obolon in the Ukrainian league and said in a statement to Shakhtar's official website:
"As many of you have probably seen during the match against Obolon, I have suffered a serious injury to my right leg that will rule me out of the action for a while.
"I would like to take this opportunity to thank everybody for the support that I received including the fans, club staff and the board of directors as well as my team-mates who have been very supportive since the injury.
"I will be supporting the club off the pitch during their domestic championship campaign and the UEFA Champions League. Very soon I hope to be playing for Shakhtar again.''
Fernandinho's loss will indeed be quite a crucial one for the 2008-09 UEFA Cup winners but they will still be confident of a home win on Wednesday as they defeated Partizan 4-1 at home in the group stage of the Europa League in 2009-10.

Beginning On A High

Partizan started their European Cup adventure from the second qualifying round, easing past FC Pyunik 4-1 on aggregate. A 5-1 aggregate victory over HJK saw them reach the play-off round where they got the better of Belgian giants Anderlecht on penalties.
This will be the Serbian champions' first appearance in the Champions League group stage since 2003-04 and the mood in the camp is one of delight and hope. However, like Shakhtar they too have an injury concern as veteran defender Mladen Krstajic is recovering from a broken nose.
Coach Alexander Stanojevic says, "He insists that he can play, but I still make the final decision. When someone has such desire, then you cannot let him decide. He is our captain and has shown overwhelming desire and motivation regardless of the broken nose."



TEAM NEWS

Shakhtar Donetsk

Fernandinho is a long-term injury concern while defender Dmytro Chygrynskiy has yet to feature since August 29 when he pulled his left hamstring against Illychivets Mariupil.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Pyatov, Srna, Chizkov, Rakytski, Rat; Stepanenko, Hubschman; D. Costa, Mkhitaryan, Willian; M. Moreno

Partizan

Joseph Kizito has recovered and could start on Wednesday and so should Krstajic, even though he is recovering from a broken nose.
Probable Lineup (4-4-2): Stojkovic, Stevanovic, Jovanovic, Krstajic, Lazevski; Tomic, Petrovic, Smiljanic, S. Ilic; Iliev, Cleo

Prediction

Shakhtar should garner maximum points from this fixture although the game against Partizan is a potential banana skin.

Shakhtar 2-0 Partizan

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15.09. (Wed) 20:45 Bayern Munchen - Roma

Starting All Over Again

Last season German giants Bayern Munich reached the final of the Champions League in dramatic style, defeating Fiorentina, Manchester United and Olympique Lyonnais on their way. It was a great run from the Bavarians that was terminated by Inter at the Bernabeu.

Just as in last season this time too Bayern have an Italian team in their group - Roma. Bayern drew with the Bianconeri 0-0 at home and hammered them 4-1 away in Turin. A win against Roma at the Allianz Arena will be expected.

Coach Louis Van Gaal will know that reaching the final of the European Cup again will not be easy but he will urge his troops to start all over again. Pitted against Roma, Basel and Cluj, Bayern will be confident of progressing to the second round with ease but they have to make a winning start.

Worries Abound

Roma's Champions League campaign has already taken a kickback as the Italian side have lost a number of first-team regulars. Mirko Vucinic, Philippe Mexes, Stefano Okaka, John Arne Riise and Paolo Castellini were already ruled out of the trip to Munich and on Monday it was revealed that midfielder Rodrigo Taddei has been struck with an injury too.

However, every cloud has a silver lining and coach Claudio Ranieri will be boosted by the return of striker Adriano to the squad. Furthermore, club talisman Francesco Totti too has been included in the squad despite looking doubtful at one point.

Ranieri will know that garnering maximum points at the Allianz Arena will be far from easy especially with the German champions having a better squad, but even a point will be hugely encouraging given that the Giallorossi will take on Basel and Cluj in the next two games.



TEAM NEWS

Bayern Munich

Arjen Robben is a long-term injury concern and Breno is not yet back to full fitness. Franck Ribery is suspended for this fixture. Van Gaal will have to choose between Ivica Olic and Mario Gomez as his centre-forward for Wednesday's game.

Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Butt, Lahm, Van Buyten, Badstuber, Contento; Van Bommel, Schweinsteiger; Mueller, Kroos, Altintop; Olic

Roma

Mirko Vucinic, Rodrigo Taddei, Stefano Okaka, John Arne Riise and Philippe Mexes all have been ruled out with respective injuries. But striker Adriano has been included in the squad and so has Francesco Totti despite an intestinal virus that he has suffered recently.

Probable Lineup (4-3-1-2): Julio Sergio, Cassetti, N. Burdisso, Juan, Rosi; Perrotta, Pizarro, De Rossi; Menez; Totti, Borriello

Prediction

A win for Bayern is likely especially as Roma are suffering from injuries. However, the Germans shouldn't get very complacent and must stay focused against Totti and Borriello.

Bayern Munich 2-1 Roma

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15.09. (Wed) 20:45 Real - Ajax

Starting With A Bang

Every season for the last six seasons Real Madrid have started their Champions League campaign with hope and expectations but have consistently failed to get past the Round of 16 in a competition that they have won nine times. This year is no different as once again Madrid are being counted as one of the favourites and to win their tenth European Cup.

But with Jose Mourinho in charge and a bunch of young and hungry players in the squad, there is a reason for the Madridistas to be confident. Los Blancos haven't exactly lightened up the Spanish Primera Division but with four points from two matches they are ahead of Barcelona in the table.

Mourinho won the Champions League with Inter last season, masterminding the defeats of Chelsea, Barcelona and Bayern Munich on the way, and he believes that "this edition will be a very open, with six or seven clubs who will compete for the title."

Much of Madrid's success in the Champions League as well as the league will depend on their star player Cristiano Ronaldo, who himself admits that they have to take it slowly if they aim to win the most coveted of club competitions this season.

"This club, as always, has the ambition to win the Champions League," Ronaldo is quoted as saying by Realmadrid.com. "I have a special feeling about this season. We can win, but we cannot put pressure on ourselves. We have all the necessary ingredients to win the competition, but we have to take one step at a time."

Back In The Big Time

Dutch powerhouse Ajax are back in the Champions League for the first time in five years and indeed playing at the Bernabeu on Wednesday evening will be a special occasion for them. Once a European powerhouse, de Godenzonen have suffered of late but they will be keen to put things on track.

The clash with Madrid will also mark the debut of manager Martin Jol in Europe's premier club competition - not exactly something that infuses confidence given that his counterpart on Wednesday will be arguably the best coach in the world at the moment - Mourinho.

Ajax skipped past the challenge of Dynamo Kyiv in the play-off round to qualify for the group stage and they do have some very good players, some of whom featured in the 2010 World Cup finals in South Africa for the Netherlands.




TEAM NEWS

Real Madrid

Star player Ronaldo has recovered his fitness and will start against Ajax as he started against Osasuna on Saturday. Midfielder Kaka is a long-term injury concern while centre-back Raul Albiol too is out. Fernando Gago and Ezequiel Garay are sidelined as well. Mahamadou Diarra is in the process of recovery.

Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Casillas, Ramos, Carvalho, Pepe, Marcelo; Alonso, L. Diarra; Ronaldo, Oezil, Higuain; Benzema

Ajax

Jol is likely to go with his accustomed 4-3-3 formation with a three-man attackline. However, striker Luis Suarez is suspended for the match and so is defender Jan Vertonghen.

Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Stekelenburg, Van der Wiel, Alderweireld, Ooijer, Anita; De Zeeuw, De Jong, Enoh; Sulejmani, El Hamdaoui, Emanuelson

Prediction

The win against Osasuna showed that under Mourinho Madrid aren't going to be very pretty - at least not in the immediate future - and that defensively los Blancos will be impenetrable. A sole goal for Madrid will do the trick for them but they have to be careful against Ajax's attack.

Real Madrid 1-0 Ajax

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15.09. (Wed) 20:45 CFR 1907 Cluj - Basel

Seeking Quick Boost

Wednesday’s encounter between Cluj and Basel may be the opening game of Group E, but it is a fixture neither side can realistically afford to lose as defeat would all but eliminate them from the competition. Paired with Bayern Munich and Roma, it would take a huge turn up for either of these underdogs to progress, and that probably means winning both fixtures against their fellow ‘makeweights’.

Romanian outfit Cluj have tasted a shock win at this level before, surprising Roma 2-1 at the Stadio Olimpico two seasons ago – a result they cannot count on repeating in this edition. Emmanuel Culio, who scored twice on that famous night, remains, but the form the Feroviarii showed that night has largely deserted them.

Cluj may be the champions of their homeland, but already their crown is starting to slip, falling six points off the pace when they lost 2-0 against Rapid Bucharest on Friday night. Defeat was to have lasting consequences for coach Andrea Mandorlini, who was jettisoned on Monday, replaced by Sorin Cartu, a double winner with Universitatea Craiova nearly two decades ago.

To expect a rapid turnaround may be asking too much, but the highly disciplined coach will be aiming to stamp his authority on CFR with immediacy. Should the trainer have the instant impact hoped for, it’s possible that Cluj’s Champions League campaign won’t be as unspectacular as it previously looked like being.

Strong On The Road

Basel are by no means Champions League regulars, having qualified for the group stages only twice previously, yet they are a side with a winning record amongst Europe’s elite, claiming 23 wins to 22 losses when placed in Europe’s top competition.

And they are a side who are no strangers to causing the odd upset either, charging through to the second group stage of the competition in season 2002-03 and drawing with Barcelona at Camp Nou in 2008-09, though on the second occasion they did lose all of their other five games in the tournament.

League defeats against Bellinzona and Luzern have rather blotted the early part of Basel’s campaign, which has otherwise passed unbeaten, with four wins from four matches recorded in qualifying for the Champions League group stages. Debrecen were comfortably eased off before Sheriff threatened to cause some problems but ultimately capitulated towards the end of their home leg.

The St. Jakob-Park club will have pinpointed this encounter as a match that will need to be won if they are to wriggle out of the group stage somehow. With bright young talent such as Valentin Stocker and especially Xherdan Shaqiri combining with old heads like Scott Chipperfield and the prolific Alexander Frei, there is a nice balance to the squad and a worthy sense of optimism that something could be achieved over the next three months.

TEAM NEWS

Cluj

Yssouf Kone has not been included in the Champions League squad after picking up a knee injury in early August that is liable to keep him out for an extended period of time. Sasa Bjelanovic is liable to be sidelined with an ankle issue.

Tomas Costa and Ferdinando Sforzini debuted at the weekend as CFR had two men sent-off – the second time in as many matches on the road they’ve been depleted to nine men for disciplinary reasons.

Probable Starting XI: Stancioiu; Panin, Cadu, Piccolo, Edimar; Muresan, E. Kone, Costa, Bastos, Culio; Sforzini

Basel

Jacques Zoua picked up a thigh problem on international duty and won’t return until early to mid-October. Genseric Kusunga has had knee issues for the last month, while Valentin Stocker is fighting to overcome an ankle injury.

Scott Chipperfield’s contribution from the bench at the weekend may be enough to earn him a berth in the starting XI ahead of Fwayo Tembo, though the Australian has struggled to break into the team this season and could be consigned to the role of impact substitute once more.

Probable Starting XI: Costanzo; Inkoom, Abraham, Çagdaş, Safari; Tembo, Huggel, Yapi, Shaqiri; Frei, Streller

Prediction

Cluj have a long unbeaten record in their domestic league at home – 40 matches stretching back nearly two years – but the Champions League is an additional step up. Basel have done well on their travels to date and should fancy their chances, though the chance of coaching at the Romanian club may be enough to spark some resistance from the home side.

CFR Cluj 1-2 Basel

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15.09. (Wed) 20:45 Milan - Auxerre

Sacrifice More
After a summer transfer campaign geared towards success both domestically and continentally, Milan’s quest for an eighth Champions League gong starts on Wednesday, when they host an Auxerre side very much at the opposite end of the economic spectrum at this level.

The Rossoneri have spent lavishly over the summer, capturing the signatures of Zlatan Ibrahimovic (albeit on loan) and Robinho amongst others, yet simply opening the chequebook is little guarantee of success. Coach Massimiliano Allegri discovered this at the weekend, when Cesena proved too good for the Diavoli, running out 2-0 winners at the Stadio Dino Manuzzi.

“It is difficult to find positives tonight,” the coach declared after the fixture to Sky Sport Italia. “To win and fight for titles you cannot play with the attitude we displayed out there. We must learn to fight for every ball and be prepared to sacrifice more.”

Luca Antonini has already indicated the dangers of showing a similarly lackadaisical attitude in midweek. “Auxerre are a cheeky team who run a lot, but we must focus on doing well against the French side,” he declared to Milan Channel. “We need to make a good impression in front of the people who will follow and support us.”

Incredibly, Milan haven’t won a home European fixture in nearly two years, a run that captures six matches in total. Against Auxerre, however, the Serie A club do have experience of victory at the San Siro, though that comes 25 years ago, when the Rossoneri turned around a 3-1 first leg deficit by claiming a 3-0 home victory.

Dream Group
Having battled through heroically in the play-off stages against a Zenit St. Petersburg side previously on an outrageously long unbeaten streak, one could forgive Auxerre’s players if they were a little disappointed at being placed in a group from which they have virtually no chance of progression. But the men from Burgundy instead simply chose to grin when pulled out alongside Milan, Real Madrid and Ajax – three of the continent’s most storied club sides.

“This is the group of death and we are the underdogs, no doubt about it,” prolific Polish international striker Ireneusz Jelen exclaimed to the media. “Then again, I always dreamed about playing against teams like Real Madrid, AC Milan and Ajax.

“Getting into the group stage means realising my biggest footballing ambition. This is sport and anything can happen, but to be realistic we will be battling for third place.”

Auxerre only sneaked into the top three in Ligue 1 in the very last seconds of last term, with Cedric Hengbart scoring a dramatic late winner against Sochaux to push AJA back into Europe’s elite level, from which they’ve been absent since 2002.

Already the Champions League has proven to be something of a distraction from the domestic game. The Burgundy club have yet to record their first win of the season in France’s top flight, lingering towards the foot of the table with four draws to their credit after five games. Benoit Pedretti seemed to have done enough to give them a first success of the term against Caen on Saturday night, but the Stade Abbe-Deschamps club were pegged back at the last moment.

Even such a late blow will not be able to take the winds from their sails ahead of this mouth-watering opportunity.

TEAM NEWS

Milan

Thiago Silva suffered a muscular strain on Saturday against Cesena and is unlikely to feature in this encounter. Daniele Bonera is therefore expected to start alongside Alessandro Nesta after Sokratis Papastathopoulos’ lamentable weekend performance.

Clarence Seedorf is expected to be available to coach Allegri but Mathieu Flamini is still missing.

Robinho didn’t start at the weekend, coming off the bench to replace Ronaldinho, and it would seem unlikely ‘the Big Four’ would all start this encounter.

Probable Starting XI: Abbiati; Zambrotta, Bonera, Nesta, Antonini; Ambrosini, Pirlo, Seedorf; Pato, Ibrahimovic, Ronaldinho

Auxerre

Roy Contout is suspended after picking up a couple of yellow cards in the play-off encounter against Zenit St. Petersburg, but he is by no means an automatic pick for Jean Fernandez.

Alexandre Licata, meanwhile, was recently told he may be forced to retire if the ankle injury that has been plaguing him for over a year cannot be operated upon.

Ireneusz Jelen, Stephane Grichting and Valter Birsa were all benched at the weekend after playing two international matches in the previous week. All three will be recalled.

Probable Starting XI: Soirn; Hengbart, Coulibaly, Mignot, Grichting; Pedretti, Ndinga; Oliech, Le Tallec, Birsa; Jelen

Prediction

In Le Championnat, Auxerre tend to prove obstinate opponents for many of their foes. Milan, despite still settling in with a new squad, are at a superior level to anything AJA face on a weekly basis. Given AJA’s lamentable domestic form, they should be expected to succumb at the San Siro, though inspired by the atmosphere and the opposition, Jean Fernandez’s men will hope to produce a worthy account of themselves. The Rossoneri will win this fixture; it’s just a case of how many by.

Milan 2-0 AJ Auxerre

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